Falling for Forever
by isindismay
Summary: Armaggedon averted, Aziraphale and Crowley walk through London and try to work out what comes next.


With every re-watch of the series, I notice extra touching and funny moments I missed before. So much love and care has been put into making it. I expect that like me, you're all getting ready to withdraw your entire life savings for when merchandise goes on sale.

* * *

Aziraphale clapped his hands and Crowley knew what he was going to say before he even opened his mouth. "Right then, what now?"

They had just finished dinner at an unassuming Mediterranean cafe in King's Cross. Aziraphale had asked him the same question at least two dozen times over the past few weeks.

"What, now now, or now?" Crowley said, gesturing first downwards then expansively to demonstrate the difference.

"There must be some streets in London that we have yet to stroll down. Perhaps we might find somewhere new to go for lunch tomorrow."

"Right."

"Pip pip. No time for dawdling."

"I'm not dawdling," Crowley muttered, resenting the application of that particular word to him.

Outside, the sun was setting. The city streets took on that peculiar golden glow. It had been raining, as it often did in London, and the warm light of the setting sun shimmered on the wet pavement.

"Lovely day, isn't it?" Aziraphale remarked as they walked down a familiar street.

"Mm. They all are. Since we stopped Armageddon, and our head offices stopped pestering us about doing 'good' and 'evil'." Crowley said, briefly taking his hands out of his pockets to do air quotes.

"Do you suppose they're still watching us?" Aziraphale said, glancing over his shoulder.

"Shouldn't think so. By the look on your lot's faces, they never want to see you again. You're dead to them, in a manner of speaking." They had spoken about going into hiding, but so far that hadn't happened. Aziraphale always got that wistful look in his eye, and Crowley knew he was thinking about his beloved bookshop. "What we need are some plans for the future."

"Plans? I don't know about that. I've always followed the-"

"Don't say it."

"-ineffable plan."

"And look where that got you! What was there for us in that plan? Nothing good, that's for sure. We need plans of our own. Just for us this time."

"When was it when it started being all about we and us?" Aziraphale asked, looking pointedly at him, but with such a soft expression. How did he do that?

"Little while ago, angel," Crowley managed to croak out. What he was doing here was the awfully British thing of stretching out the definition of a word to a point where it, if spoken by another nationality, would have reached breaking point several miles back.

And Aziraphale did that thing of his, when he smiled at him and let out a little sigh, then looked away and glanced at him again.

Crowley had to resist the urge to throw his arms around the angel. He had wanted to since that night in the pub when he had shown up despite being discorporated. But one couldn't throw their arms around an incorporeal spirit. Then again, when he borrowed someone else's body, but that would have been too public. Not to mention a bit complicated, since Madame Tracy was also still inhabiting it. And since then, well, he'd just been putting it off really.

"Anyway, don't change the subject. When we came up with the arrangement, that was a thing. A plan sort of thing."

"I don't remember it being precisely like that. It was more of a make it up as you go along sort of thing."

"Well all right," Crowley admitted. He stopped. "What if- what if that's what life is all about? Well not life, but you know what I mean. What if you have to make it all up as you go along? I've seen the humans do it. See it every day. Look at them, what are they doing? Who knows? Do they know? Probably not! And they do it again, day after day after day. Exhausting!"

"I don't know why you're getting so upset, Crowley. If there's no plan then we can jolly well do anything we want."

They walked in quiet contemplation for some time. And despite any desire to prevent it, the sun went down on them.

They had walked as far as the banks of the Thames. It was quiet for this time of the evening, well as quiet as London was able to be. The rush hour had ended, but the slow trickle of traffic continued.

Crowley crossed in front of Aziraphale and put his hands on the wall in front of the river. Aziraphale stood next to him and they both looked out over the water. Reflected lights glittered and warped in the water. Boats went by, and birds flew past. Everything was just sort of, just getting on with it.

Turning, he threw his arms around Aziraphale. It felt awkward and didn't seem right, not until the angel shifted slightly and embraced him back.

"Aziraphale, I thought I'd lost you for good!" He wailed into the wool of Aziraphale's coat.

"No, I'm still right here, Crowley." The angel's voice shook a little.

"Not now! Before!"

"Oh. Oh! When I was discorporated!"

"Yeah. I never got to say." Crowley was still holding him tightly. Now he finally had Aziraphale in his arms he didn't want to let him go. Plus if he did they would have to look at each other, and he wasn't quite ready for that yet.

"I think you did actually."

"Well I'm saying it again!"

Aziraphale lifted up his head and moved away a little. They were still very close but now they could look at each other. Aziraphale's eyes were dilated and Crowley noticed with a gulp that he could see his own reflection in them. He looked away self consciously.

Aziraphale patted him on the back awkwardly and broke the silence. "I was sad that I almost didn't get chance to say goodbye. Distraught actually. But there was a lot going on at the time."

"Don't you dare say goodbye to me. Not ever!" He buried his face in Aziraphale's coat once more.

Crowley was alarmed by something touching his leg. He looked down to see a dog sniffing at them. Its owner was too focused on her mobile phone to even notice them, and continued walking along, pulling the dog with her.

That broke the spell. Crowley extricated himself and turned back to the Thames. Aziraphale's hand slid down his forearm and he looped his arm around his waist.

"Don't know what I'd do without you. You're everything to me," Crowley muttered.

"I know. I've always felt such love in everything you do for me," the angel said, pressing his cheek against the demon's. "Thank you."

"S'alright," Crowley said. "Had to find something to do to pass the time until the end of days."

"But now there isn't going to be an end of days. I get to spend eternity with you."

Crowley felt Aziraphale's little sigh next to his ear, and gulped. He coughed. "You could have spent eternity in heaven, you know."

Aziraphale took a step away from him and clasped his hands in front of his body.

"Climbing every mountain," Crowley said with a grin.

Aziraphale shuddered. "Oh don't."

"Of course the humans could still find a way to make this old rock go kaboom. In fact, it's pretty damn likely that they will, and soon."

Aziraphale's face lit up with a bright smile. Crowley frowned at him.

"That's it! That can be our plan. We can help the world become a better place. And help the world, well, not end."

"Ha ha! Forget about good and evil. We can do whatever we decide is right!" Crowley shoved his hands in his pockets. "Just like we always have done, on the sly."

"And there'll be no-one there breathing down our necks and interfering with our plans. Smashing!"

"We could always scope out some other planets y'know, just in case."

"Oh ye of little faith!"

They looked at each other and both started laughing.

Wordlessly, they both headed towards the nearest bench. This one was had arms shaped into needlessly extravagant wrought iron Sphinxes. They usually sat at the very ends of a bench, the middle spot was where wine sat. But they didn't have any today, and Crowley found that sitting closer to Aziraphale was all at once comfortable and thrillingly anxiety inducing.

Aziraphale was looking at him, not differently, no, it was the same as always. But that soft adoring look seemed to have taken on an extra meaning now. Crowley realised that he was smiling too. He took off his dark glasses so he could see better. The lights of passing cars glinted in the angel's eyes and threw highlights on his blond curls.

"'Ziraphale," Crowley breathed, reaching out a hand to touch his hair. It was soft, so soft. Now they were leaning towards each other and their lips met. He felt Aziraphale's arms gently encircle him.

Big Ben finished chiming ten o' clock, and they sat back. And like in some over-choreographed film, they both looked at each other and sighed.

"That was really rather lovely," Aziraphale said looking flustered and fidgeting with his hands.

"Mm," was all that Crowley could manage.

Crowley rested his arm on the back of the bench and put his hand on Aziraphale's shoulder. Aziraphale shifted a little closer.

"So, step one, save the world. Step two, live happily ever after," the angel said, looking rather pleased with himself.

"No, no, step one- step one is this," Crowley said, pulling him in for another kiss.

Around them, the water of the Thames sloshed against its banks and the sound of traffic echoed in the air. Nothing had changed. Nothing except both of them now had a new appreciation for the way things always had been.


End file.
